“The best practices developed back then remain the best practices today: avoid overload, focus on one thing at a time, and block off specific hours in your day for your most mentally demanding efforts.” (Cal Newport Newsletter, March 9, 2026).
Professor Newport’s advice is about how to, “think deeply about meaningful ideas” but it struck me — especially after volunteering at a recent Rally trial (oh my 🤯) — that the same could be said about dog training.
No — the same SHOULD be said about dog training and so let me say it — again.
Capella
Avoid overload.
Focus on one thing at a time.
Starry
The behaviors we want in a performance dog are actually long chains of very small behaviors — I call these small behaviors Least Trainable Units (LTU). Each LTU needs to be trained separately before they are slowly woven together to create something amazing.
For example, this picture shows my puppy being trained to heel.
Capella and Starry
How is a stationary dog sitting in front of me being trained to heel?
Look at her engagement. Note the eye contact. Engagement is a heeling LTU and one that takes a long time to get right — but the results are magical.
A magical moment with my beloved Claire 🩷
As I watch disengaged dogs and disengaged handlers, I am sad for all involved. The dogs who look hopefully at their handlers for connection — and are ignored — and the handlers who beg, plead, yell — and hurt — tuned out dogs.
It doesn’t have to be that way. When it is, 100% blame goes to the handler. That is NOT a bad thing to say or to feel — the ability to shape an outcome is empowering. Blaming the dog ensures nothing changes — and how sad is that?!
Random not-sad first daffodil
Focused work that avoids overload requires that we suspend the desire for instant gratification (and participation ribbons), and train with intelligence, creativity, and a commitment to the slow process that generates meaningful — and desired — results.
This is true in Life, with Dogs — and just in life.
Happy Friday the 13th from a couple of very lucky black cats.
❤️